A French Affair: The Paris Beat, 1965-1998

Having lived and worked as an American in Paris for 7 years in the late 80's and early 90's, I really appreciated Ms. Blume's commentaries on the French and evocations of the details of Parisian life that made it so wonderful. She captures the sheer fun of observing and participating in a foreign culture better than any writer on the subject I've read to date. Her empathy for the French despite their quirks - naturally, only quirks when seen by an American - resonates well with my experience. Highly recommended!

Phew... Let me defend this book a little against a couple of odd criticisms. First, this is a collection of essays written over quite a few years. As such, it is not meant to be cohesive in the way a single book about the French might be. That said, it all hangs together quite well and is organized in an intelligent and useful way. It also seems a little odd to make a distinction between a book about "the French" and a book about the French which includes material about French filmmakers, writers, etc. I would think any book about the culture would be incomplete without fairly extensive sections on the arts. The arts are pretty inextricably linked with outsiders perception of the French and, to a large degree, their own perceptions about themselves. The people she talks about are hardly obscure or only of interest to "old people" --- Duras, Simone de Beauvoir, Truffaut, Doisneau for god's sake, whose photos adorn the walls of a hefty percentage of college kids to this day. Duras is a particularly amusing choice for such a book, as she seems more stereotypically "French" than perhaps anyone else in the whole country. Should the reader not know who any of these people are, the essays are written for a wide audience and do not assume knowledge of the subjects. And the style is certainly not coldly intellectual; the writing is intelligent, but quite breezy and very enjoyable.

I don't think I've enjoyed a book this much in ages. Mary Blume really understands the French, especially the Parisians, and gives them to the reader without the colonialist tendencies of Peter Mayle. If you love Paris, you must read this book. A votre sante!

An entertaining, literate, even exciting book, a collection of her journalistic writings while living in Paris for a number of years. I'm trying to stretch the book out, to make it last as long as possible. I wish it was possible for a sequel right away!

This American turned Parisian writes with affection, insight and wit of a peculiarly wonderful place and the times in which she has lived there and merged with both. Marvelously written pieces by the author of the wonderful and lamentably out of print 'biography' of the Riviera. One only wishes (thus the four stars) that the book were longer!